This Is Your Body on Yoga

This is your body on yoga: relaxed, powerful, balanced, strong, and healthy.
Image: Shutterstock

Remember those old scare tactics teachers and the media used to employ to convince kids never to smoke or do drugs? This is your body on drugs would show pictures of a brain lit up in just a few areas—a representation of the lack of activity some drugs would lead to. These are your lungs on nicotine would show blackened lungs side by side with healthy pink ones. Later, those scare tactics changed language, with campaigns like Meth: Not Even Once hitting billboards in areas where meth use was a problem. Being from one of those areas, I can remember cringing as we drove past the billboards every trip to and from college.

I never fell into the drug trap. Perhaps it’s partly attributed to those scare tactics, but I think it can mostly be attributed to my personal experiences surrounding drugs. Having a close family member suffer through serious drug use and then rehab leaves a permanent impression—or at least it did on me.

But as much as I respect those old campaigns and recognize how effective they can be, I would love to see positive versions of them: Crossfit: Not Just Once or This is your body on (insert exercise here). As humans, we seem to find a way to focus in on the negative so much that sometimes we forget the power of positive thinking.

I recently read an article from Women’s Health that explained some of the seriously cool things that happen to your body when you do yoga. Here are a few highlights from that article:

Practicing yoga is like practicing life: you fall down, you get
back up. You lose your balance, you find it again.
Image:Shutterstock

Breathing, which any yogi can tell you is a huge part of yoga, gets your brain really fired up. All those breathe ins and breathe outs activate your prefrontal cortex, which is the part of our brain responsible for higher-level thinking. You’ll also gain more control over your emotions as your amygdala relaxes and mood-enhancing chemicals are released.

Say bye-bye to stress, too: breathing, movement, and relaxation techniques are all used during yoga, which helps literally your entire body relax. Even your resting heart rate can decrease both during and after class.

Sometimes after I run or lift weights, I am seriously tempted to ruin it all with a big, greasy burger. But after yoga, that’s not the case. It turns out that all that relaxation cuts back on production of cortisol (a stress hormone), which has been linked to junk food cravings. So that’s why I always want a huge salad after class!

Practicing yoga regularly also amps up your immune system and slowly builds up your internal balance and strength as you stretch and tone muscles. The more I practice, the less clumsy I feel in real life—and the more graceful.

Be sure to check out the full article on Women’s Health here: http://www.womenshealthmag.com/fitness/yoga-body

Average Sized Mannequin Photo Goes Viral

I’m sure I’m not the only person who’s ever walked by mannequins on display at a store and asked, “Really?” It’s not uncommon to see weirdly skinny mannequins sporting merchandise in size 0, safety pinned at the back because it’s still too big. Those clothes often end up being what I describe as “good on the rack,” but not really anywhere else.

The Gap's "Always Skinny" mannequin earned
the nickname "Death Camp Chic"

You know it’s a problem when your bones are literally bigger than what’s supposed to be a full flesh-and-bone representation. Of course, not all mannequins are like that. But the average size for mannequins in the United States is between sizes 4 and 6. This contrasts sharply with the average woman’s size, which is between 12 and 14 according to Women’s Wear Daily.

Mannequins are also blessed with abnormally long figures and limbs, some as much as 6 inches taller and 6 sizes smaller than the average woman, according to the Chicago Tribune. But lately some in the fashion industry have taken a stand against the promotion of anorexic figures, including major gurus like Vogue, which is run by editor Anna Wintour and contributed to by fashionistas like Lauren Santo Domingo.

But now a photo of two mannequins is making the viral rounds on the Internet—and the approval has been overwhelming. The picture depicts two mannequins from an unknown Swedish retail store sporting sets of purple lingerie. What’s special about them is that they actually look like real women. They have hips, breasts, and soft tissue. Their legs and arms look proportional. They are still slim, yes, but in a healthy way.

Average-sized mannequins from a Swedish retailer
are receiving praise for being realistic.

A few worry that making larger mannequins will promote obesity, but to that I say “Pah!” The mannequins aren’t obese; they are a more realistic depiction of what women actually look like. How does seeing a super skinny mannequin help us picture clothing on our own bodies? How does it make us feel when those clothes don’t seem to fit in quite the same way?

The picture surfaced earlier this week on the Women’s Rights News Facebook page with a message attached: “Store mannequins in Sweden. They look like real women. The US should invest in some of these.”

And I have to say, I agree. What do you think?

Recognizing Anorexia Nervosa

I read an article today that made me incredibly sad. It was about a six-year-old little girl named Sophie, who developed anorexia in kindergarten. Kindergarten. She started restricting her portions of food more and more, exercised compulsively on the monkey bars, and even began throwing away her lunch and snacks at school.

And because the beginning stages of anorexia nervosa are not immediately physically apparent, no one knew. “She was slim, but not skeletal,” recalls her mother.

Be kind to your body. You'll only have one.

One night, Sophie told her mother about her problem, telling her, “Mommy, I have a problem… I am hungry all the time and I can’t eat. A voice in my head is telling me not to eat.” She was diagnosed with anorexia nervosa in the first grade, after not gaining weight for ten months straight and dropping from the 60^th percentile to the 19^th percentile for her weight.

Sophie is eight now, and is doing well. Her parents got her treatment from a specialty center and continually monitor her eating at home and school. Sophie was also diagnosed with mild obsessive-compulsive disorder and anxiety.

I’ve always thought of anorexia as a mostly society driven problem; I knew that there was a psychological component to eating disorders, but I never realized that sometimes they can manifest without the individual even really understanding what’s going on. Sophie, at six, didn’t know why she felt she couldn’t eat.

Many people believe that eating disorders are a choice for individuals… but the truth is, I think it’s less of a choice than we realize. Anorexics can realize what’s going on, can fear for their life, can see that what they’re doing to themselves is wrong—but they can’t always stop doing it. And as a society, I think we could be a lot better at understanding that and being more supportive to those who suffer from eating disorders.

The girl with the eating disorder is often the last to know she is ill.
Becoming the new feminine ideal requires just the right combination of insecurity, exercise and anorexia.

According to the National Institute of Mental Health, over 10 million Americans suffer from eating disorders, which have the highest mortality rate of any other psychiatric illness. But despite this, the thinspiration movement continues to grow online, promoting eating disorders as a way of life.

Anorexia isn’t always immediately visible to us, especially at the beginning. Many individuals who suffer from anorexia may never look like that skeletal image we hold in our minds, but that doesn’t mean it’s not there. Here are some of the behavioral signs and symptoms of anorexia:

• Obsession with food, weight, calories, dieting, or exercise
• Constant anxiety of gaining weight or being fat even when healthy or losing weight
• Refusal to eat with or around others
• Extremely self critical, anxious, depressed, or irritable. Is a perfectionist
• Self worth is determined by appearance and weight, loss of desire to engage in social relationships or activities

"You are imperfect, permanently and inevitably flawed.
And you are beautiful."
Image from Tumblr.com

I am certainly someone that values eating healthy, exercising, and generally being aware of overall health—but I hope that I’ve never given the impression that thinner is better, no matter the cost. Because it isn’t. We were all made differently, and more important than being “thin” or “skinny” is being healthy and happy.

Love yourself. Love your body—and be nice to it. You only get one.

Fast Food Accounts for 11% of American Diet

Fast food accounts for 11% of the American diet

Image: Shutterstock

We try to eat healthy as much as possible at home. We consume far more fresh produce than I ever did in my youth (when most of my veggies came from cans) and most of our meals consist of about 75% veggies and 25% meat. Sugar, salt, butter, cream, and all those delicious but overly-used additions are used sparingly. And while we might order the occasional pizza on a Saturday night, I honestly can’t remember the last time we made our way through a fast food drive-thru.

I count myself lucky in that fast food has never settled well with me. My stomach is especially sensitive and I’m a picky eater, so even as a teen I didn’t usually find fast food all that appetizing. But we still ate it from time to time because it was cheap and easy to come by.

Image from impawards.com
We are still a "Fast Food Nation"

But the sad truth is that many don’t feel the same, or they can’t afford to. Fast food accounts for more than 11% of the total American diet, according to federal health officials. And though that’s down two percent from a few years ago, that’s still a frightening amount, especially for young people.

The decisions we make as young adults can affect our health for the rest of our lives, and struggling with obesity in our 20s can put us at a high risk for metabolic syndrome (high blood pressure, cholesterol, blood sugar levels, and abdominal fat), diabetes, cancer, and cardiovascular disease, among others.

According to the Center for Disease Control (CDC), people aged 20 to 39 got 15% of their daily calories from fast food, while those older than 60 came in at just 6%. Young black people aged 20-39 were even higher, with 21% of their daily calories coming from fast food.

Image from livingachangedlife.blogspot.com
FRUIT is fast food!

And it seems that obesity only compounds the issue, as a survey of weight groups revealed that obese young adults got the highest percentage of calories from fast food—18%. For the most part, income didn’t seem to have much effect on how much fast food people ate. That means at this point it’s more a battle with bad habits and ease of obtainment than anything else.

I’m all for having food that’s available quickly, especially since sometimes I’m on the road or in a hurry and need a quick bite. I’ve been happy to see some fast food establishments offering more healthy options in the past few years, and I hope that trend continues. Obesity is a dangerous problem that should be addressed, particularly by those establishments that are largely responsible for the issue.

Do you eat fast food? If you do, do you choose to do so because it is 1) inexpensive, 2) quick, 3) easily obtained, or 4) because you enjoy it?

Living Healthy: Knowing Your Key Indicators

I often ponder the thought that each of us is unique, both in body and mind. Yet we continually make mass generalizations of what is “right” or “wrong” for our health, without any respect to individuals. Of course, there are things that are generally good for most people, and I can understand why we fall into the habit of applying those truths to everyone. But I think the single most important key to living a healthy life is knowing your unique situation.

Image from dare-mighty-things.tumblr.com
"Health is a relationship between you and your body."

For example, my workout buddy and I run together several times a week and attend exercise classes one to two times per week. She also lifts weights and does core strength training at home. She stretches every morning, as well as before and after our runs and classes. I would like to say I am as vigilant as her, but I’m not—which is part of the reason she is more fit than I am.

But though she has a stronger core and body in general, she is constantly hurting herself. Not the pushed-too-hard kind of hurting. The “I sat down and now my back is tweaked out” kind. She is a thousand times more careful than I am, yet she is always getting injured.

Another friend has cut most carbs, grains, and sugars out of her diet because when she eats them more than occasionally, she finds that she puts on extra weight. I have been on a low-carb, low-grain, and low-sugar for the better part of a year and it doesn’t affect my weight at all.

One of my roommates can’t eat or drink anything with aspartame in it because it gives him bad migraines. I also get migraines, but aspartame doesn’t have that affect on me—but alcohol does, if I drink more than one. He can drink several and not end up with a headache.

Image from exp.lore.com
"Self knowledge is no guarantee of happiness.
But it is on the side of happiness
and can supply the courage to fight for it."

I think as we grow, we learn more about ourselves, and sometimes that includes learning about our health. But too many people rely on the doctor when they are feeling down and out rather than proactively managing their health. I read about an interesting program the other day that is coming out of Henry Kravis’ company, Kohlberg Kravis Roberts. It works with employees to help them recognize and understand their own key health indicators and better manage their health.

Now, I’m lucky enough to have health insurance, but there is certainly no program like this that helps me understand my health. What’s my normal blood pressure? No idea—they never tell me so I assume it’s normal. It’s things like that which I should know but don’t.

What do you think? Is it our doctors’ jobs to essentially fix us when we’re sick, or should they be working to help us understand our own health? Do you know of any other programs out there like KKR’s that work with employees to do this? I’m interested to find out what people know and want to know about their own health.